"YES! IT’S WORTH IT"
TEXT: I CORINTHIANS 15:58
INTRODUCTION
I am really excited about the study we will be doing together today. I was already to study another text with you this morning, BUT I was convicted, I believe by the Holy Spirit, of the need to share and study I Corinthians 15:58 with you.
Is anyone out there discouraged today (you don’t need to raise your hands). I am sure many of you are, and if you are not discouraged now, I am reasonably confident that many here have been in the past and many more will be discouraged in the future.
You know the more I study and read through the book of I Corinthians, the more I realize that this group of Christian men and women, that were serving the Lord in Corinth nearly 2000 years ago, had many reasons to be, more than just a little discouraged. They like other Christians throughout the years discovered that the Christian walk at times gets hard. Many members of this church, were no doubt tired and weary. Let me introduce you to a few of the men and women who were serving the Lord in Corinth.
But before I do, let me again emphasis the fact that when a person in the first century gave his life to Christ, they suffered in many ways right from the start. Many lost their jobs, their social standing, their homes and even their families. So within the church in Corinth you have people, real people like you and me, with hopes and dreams, who have given up a lot for the Lord, and have also found out that life isn’t always easy, that it isn’t always a bowl full of cherries.
Take Bill for example he had to give up a lot when he came to Christ and he did it willingly, he wasn’t looking for applause. But can you imagine how he felt when a brother in the Church took him to a Roman court and was now suing him before ungodly judges.
And then there is the Jones family, they were very poor but they came to Christ, and felt that in Christ they were as good as anyone. But lately at the agape feasts, that they have before Church (similar to a pot luck dinner) those with great wealth didn’t wait for them to get there (you see Mr. Jones works late). So the rich were eating all of the fine foods that they had brought and Mr. Jones and his family, when they finally got there, only had the small bowl of rice that they had brought. The rich made sure they had their fill and that they ate the best, but The Jones and the other poor families were going away hungry.
There was also a woman named Mary. She had been a prostitute, and she was given hope when she heard of the Love of Jesus for the women at the well. "maybe he will forgive me too? " she thought to herself. Later she repented of her wicked ways and gave her life to Jesus. And now, as Mary looks around the church, which was supposed to be different then the world she sees gross acts of sexual immorality, of kind that even those in the world she left behind would be ashamed of, and not only were the Church leaders not ashamed, BUT they were proud and they applauded what was taking place.
There were so many good and Godly people in the Church at Corinth who served the Lord faithfully, but all the quarreling, all the jealousy, all divisions, all the boasting and putting other people down was wearing upon them and it was beating them down and it was crushing their spirit. And they wondered many times with tears in their eyes, where is the Love? where is the fellowship?
From within the church body itself, they suffered tremendous hardship, and from without the Roman and Jewish persecution was pounding them everyday, it was making it hard to buy and it was making it hard to sell, and was beginning to make it hard for them even to feed their families. And now, The Apostle Paul is telling them that things are going to get worse, the persecution is going to grow, the fire is going to get much hotter. That the storm is on the horizon.
Without a doubt, many in the Church at Corinth were discouraged, they were tired, weary and worn, and they were wondering if the Christian life was worth it, "is really worth all the effort, all the sacrifice or should I just throw in the towel and quit". And the tides of discouragement came crashing in.
Times were tough for the Church in Corinth, Paul in his letter writes about real problems that were in a real Church, and real problems effect real people, and real people get discouraged! Maybe their names weren’t Bill or Mary, but nevertheless they were there, they were living and surviving through the hard times, problems crisis we read about, AND they were hurting, they were discouraged, and they were weary, and many times they just wanted to quit.
I don’t know where you are right now in your Christian race, I’m not really sure how well things are going for you, as you fight the good fight. Maybe you are still moving fast and swinging hard (and that’s great!), or maybe you’re up against the ropes, your arms are tired and heavy, and you can just barely hold them up against the onslaught of punches coming your way. Maybe your wondering if the Christian life is really worth fighting for, maybe right now, throwing in the towel seems like an attractive option.
Friends, I know from personal experience that Christians still get discouraged today. Many times Christians wonder if all their efforts are just a waste of time. "Am I making any progress or am I just spinning my wheels".
There are many reasons, there are many things that happen, in our lives that bring on discouragement, as we live for the Lord. Maybe, your here today and have been a member of ETCC for along time, you have given this work your time, your talents and treasure, and maybe you are comparing this work to other works and you’re feel that ETCC should be further along. And you are wondering if all your efforts are worth it. And the tides of discouragement come crashing in.
Maybe, you teach a class, and you put in a great amount of effort, but you’re just aren’t sure if you’re really making an impact on your students lives. Sometimes when class is over you feel like a failure. "I’m no good at this, I just can’t do it".
And the tides of discouragement come crashing in.
Or Maybe, you are discouraged because as you look into the world it seems like the wicked people have it so easy financially, they have the nice homes the cars and can send there kids to college, and here you are one of God’s children, on the winning team, and you’re struggling and sacrificing just to make ends met.
Wondering if the bills will get paid this month.
And the tides of discouragement come crashing in.
Maybe, you are trying to be the Husband, the Parent, or the Wife God wants you to be (it’s hard, you’re doing your best) and your family isn’t responding. It’s like they don’t even notice. And you are tired, you are hurting and you wonder, if it’s worth the effort. Wondering if you can keep on going. And then waves of discouragement come crashing in.
Maybe, you are discouraged because you have been trying for many years to get a family member, or a friend, to really commit to the Lord, you love and care about them and want them to come to Christ, and they just don’t seem to be listening, and they don’t seem to care.
And there are many other reasons that people get discouraged.
There are many other sources that drive the tides of discouragement. We all get discouraged at times, we all at times wonder if it’s really worth the effort, we all at times are tempted to: throw up our hands; to throw in the towel; to give up and quit.
There were many people in the Church in Corinth, and there are many people in the church today, who are trapped in the dark dungeons of discouragement. Paul wants people then, and wants people now, to know that there is indeed a way out, he wants them to know, that the fight is worth fighting, that the race is worth running and that the Christian life is worth living.
Our main text today is I Corinthians 15:58. And in this verse Paul tells Christians what they need to do to overcome discouragement as they live for Christ, he tells them how to breakout, from the dungeons of despair.
[I Corinthians 15:58]
I. WE NEED TO BE STANDING FIRM
THEREFORE, MY DEAR BROTHERS, STAND FIRM. LET NOTHING MOVE YOU.
Paul addresses them in this verse as "Dear Brothers", actually in the original language he addresses them as his "beloved brothers". You can just sense Paul’s emotion as he shares this verse with them, my beloved brothers in Christ, I love you I care about you, you are a part of my family, You are my children in the faith, I want what’s best for you. I understand that it is tough, I know what you are going through (I’ve suffered great hardships myself), this command I give you is for your own good, because I care about you. "Stand firm let nothing move you".
{ILLUSTRATION}
When I was in the Navy I had the opportunity to go to San Juan Puerto Rico. It was a neat Place and while there, we went swimming in the ocean. Let me tell you that I have never been in an ocean with a current like that. The waves were crashing hard and the undertow was incredible. My first few minutes in I was caught by surprise and was tossed all over the place and pulled under many times. Unless I firmly planted my feet in the ocean sand and braced myself I had no chance of standing against the strong pull and the crashing waves.
Friends the waves of discouragement and the tides of despair are out there. The current is strong and the waves are relentless.
Paul says that we are to let nothing move us. LET NOTHING, LET NOTHING! MOVE US!! Many waves will come crashing towards us and will try to get us off course. They will try to knock us down, and to pull us under.
But we must stand firm in our faith and in our commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. And let me share with you the way that makes standing firm easier. DON’T STAND ALONE!
1. We need to first of all stand with Jesus. And how do we do that? By getting to know Jesus and making Jesus a living reality in our life, through the Word and Bible Study. There is no other way to stand with Jesus, except by spending time with him.
We need to plant our feet and our confidence firmly in the Lord and his Word. And as we stand with Him, and as the washes come crashing in He will keep us from falling victim to discouragement.
2. And we also need to stand with each other. When a wave comes crashing in towards us with great force, it is much easier to stand against it when we have linked arms with another member of Christ’s church. We need to be a part of each others lives. We need to uplift and support each other.
Therefore my dear brothers, stand firm, let nothing move you.
I. WE NEED TO GIVE OURSELVES FULLY.
Paul says ALWAYS give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord.
Let’s say it together. "Therefore my dear......"
The tendency when we are discouraged is for us to quit, to stop working to give up.
It is easy way out to just quit when we are not achieving the results that we want.
We are on a diet and we step on a scale and the needle points to a number that we didn’t want to see, and many times we give up.
Or if we don’t get the grade we were hoping for or the promotion we were anticipating, we stop studying and we stop trying.
Paul knows how the human mind works, he has one, and he also has God’s Spirit (he’s an apostle), so Paul knows the tendency of people who get discouraged as the live for Christ is to quit.
Paul in verse 58 tells us that we are not to do this in our walk with the Lord.
Rather, he says we are to Always give ourselves fully to the work of the Lord. Always means just that, Always, not sometimes not now and then But ALWAYS! And Fully means just that Fully not just a little bit, not the leftovers, But Fully.
We are always to do what? GIVE
We are always to give what? Ourselves (our lives, our energies are very being)
How are we to give ourselves? We are to FULLY give ourselves.
(not just a part but the whole)
We are to always give ourselves fully to what ? To the work of the Lord.
When you feel like throwing in the towel and quitting we need to: Keep teaching that class
Keep working in the church
Keep sharing our faith
we need to keep serving the Lord.
We need to BE something ? standing firm
We need to give something? our lives fully
III. WE NEED TO believe something? THAT WE HAVE A BRIGHT FUTURE.
Therefore my dear brothers,
Stand firm let nothing move you,
Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord.
Because you know that your labor is not in vain.
Isn’t it nice after a hard days work to have something to show for your effort.
If you are like me after, let’s say washing and waxing your car you like to look at it and see it shine. Seeing your car sparkle and shine after hours working in the hot sun makes your effort worth while. Now suppose you spent all that time and looked back at your car and it looked the same as when you started.
It wouldn’t be very satisfying, would it?
(other examples depending on time: washing dishes and still have a sink full, cutting the grass and it’s still needs cutting,
putting in 8 hours and getting no $$, paying your bills and the balance doesn’t change.)
The church in Corinth was going through hard times and Paul throughout this chapter tells them that there efforts are worth it.
Paul wants all Christians to realize and believe that they have a bright future. And when we realize just how incredibly bright our future is, it will give us the strength and desire to stand firm and to give ourselves fully.
Friends we have a bright future; it couldn’t possibly get any brighter! In I Corinthians Chapter 15, we find great hope and reasons for pressing on and enduring hardships.
Let me share with you a few of these great verses. And I am confident that we like those who were in Corinth will find great comfort and joy in these verses.
*** In verses 3-5, Paul proclaims the great Gospel truth, that makes our bright future possible.
*** In verses 30-32, Paul says this bright hope is why he endures such hardships.
Paul endured this because the dead or raised because Christ has been raised.
*** In verses 50-57, The Apostle Paul describes our bright future.
a new body, no more pain (are you hurting physically, well you won’t in the future), no more sorrows or tears (is your heart breaking, are tears roiling down your cheeks each night, Jesus will wipe away every tear, in your future there is no more sorrow ever!!) no more sickness or disease (is your body tired, is disease causing your physical body to suffer, as age creep in and stole your youth and vitality, Don’t be discouraged you’ll get a new body and you’ll be better than ever, in you r future disease and sickness will be remembered no more) And also in your future there no more sin(are you tired of living in a wicked and corrupt generation, friends it won’t always be that because we are heading home), there is no death in our future, only eternity with God, only sweet sweet victory.
Praise be to God who gives us the Victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Therefore my dear brothers
Stand firm, let nothing move you
Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord
Because YOU KNOW that your labor is not in vain.
CONCLUSION
If your here today and you are a Christian, I say to you "Yes! It’s Worth It!!" You must believe that you have a bright future, Paul say’s that we know that our labor is not in vain.
And because of this I encourage you to stand firm and to let nothing move you, always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord.
If you’re here today and you are not a Christian, you can’t know that your labor is not in vain. As a matter of fact without Jesus Christ as your Savior according scripture all your Labor in fact, is "In Vain". Now is the time to change that,
